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Herons and Egrets Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series

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Herons and Egrets Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series U.S. Department of Agriculture Animal & Plant Health Inspection Service Wildlife Services August 2017 Herons and Egrets Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series Michael D. Hoy District Supervisor USDA-APHIS-Wildlife Services Almyra, Arkansas Figure 1. Great Blue Heron (Ardea herodias) Human-Wildlife Conflicts Landscapes Fish-eating birds also can have an impact on intensively managed sport fisheries. Herons and egrets commonly cause Damage occurs when herons and egrets Quick Links damage at aquaculture facilities and feed on fish purchased and released for Human-Wildlife Conflicts 1 recreational fishing waters where fish are recreational sport fishing activities. Values held at high densities. In one study, on of these fish can be quite high given the Damage Identification 2 average wading birds consumed from 4 to intensity of management activities and the Management Methods 2 24 golden shiners per day at minnow direct relationship of fishery quality to Economics 4 production facilities in Arkansas. Great property value. blue herons and great egrets commonly Species Overview 5 feed at catfish production facilities in Livestock and Pets Legal Status 9 Mississippi. The tendency for herons and egrets to congregate in large feeding Great blue herons are known to feed on Glossary & Key Words 10 flocks often leads to extensive loss of fish fish in backyard water gardens. This can be a problem in urban areas as fish in Resources 11 at aquaculture facilities. these small ponds often are considered Appendix 12 valuable pets. Page 2 WDM Technical Series─Herons and Egrets Management Methods Integration of multiple control methods is essential in developing a strategy to manage heron and egret damage. If implemented in a timely and persistent manner, all methods discussed below will provide effective control of wading bird damage. Reliance on one method rarely works to prevent or control extensive bird damage. When developing a control program, realize that every damage situation is unique. Incorporate the uniqueness of the situation into your control program and use as many control strategies as possible to develop your management Figure 2. Great blue heron damage to fish. strategy. Habitat Modification Human Health and Safety Small, shallow impoundments are attractive feeding sites Nesting colonies often cause problems in urban areas for wading birds and should be avoided. Herons and egrets when urbanization spreads into lowland habitats where will rapidly congregate if fish are left in these conditions for colonial nest sites have traditionally existed. Odor from extended periods. Shallow water conditions are often deposited fecal material in these areas is a problem. necessary to harvest commercial fish and cannot be Histoplasmosis is not commonly found in soils from heron/ avoided. If this occurs, be prepared to implement egret rookeries, but proper conditions for this fungal frightening devices to disperse the birds. disease exist in these areas. Rookeries near airports may pose a flight safety risk to aircraft. Diseased fish are highly vulnerable to heron and egret depredation. Maintain quality fish health standards to help minimize wading bird depredation. Damage Identification Often, heron and egret damage initially is identified by the presence of birds feeding at the damage site. Further investigation will determine that fish are missing or damaged (Figure 2). Damage often includes puncture holes or slices on the back or sides of a fish. Occasionally, damage at aquaculture facilities is not realized until harvest when fish production falls short of expectations. This is often the case if ponds are not regularly frequented by humans or if birds are feeding at night. Figure 3. Herons and egrets prefer vegetated banks. U.S. Department of Agriculture Page 3 Herons and egrets prefer to feed along vegetated banks A where they are concealed from their prey (Figure 3). Pond banks without vegetation are less attractive to birds and will decrease the efficiency of wading bird feeding. Urban rookeries can be prevented by adequately thinning nesting habitat. Since herons and egrets are protected under the Migratory Bird Treaty Act, habitat management in active rookeries is prohibited. All habitat modifications to prevent future rookeries must be performed during the nonbreeding season. In some situations, it is possible to get a Migratory Bird Depredation Permit from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) to allow habitat modifications during the breeding season. Contact your local USFWS office for further guidance. B Exclusion Total exclusion is the complete enclosure of an area with netting or wire mesh caging to eliminate bird use (Figure 4). Exclosures are the only way to completely restrict heron and egret access to ponds and raceways. It is effective, but due to cost and structural problems in spanning large distances, it is generally considered impractical to totally exclude birds at water holding structures larger than 5 acres. In addition, exclosures are difficult to incorporate Figure 4. A total exclosure eliminates access by birds completely (a), into a commercial aquaculture facility as they can interfere whereas overhead lines or wires provide only partial exclusion (b). with fish management practices. Total exclosures are recommended for protection of fish in urban water gardens. The small ponds and high value fish make this control method cost effective. However, the Overhead wire exclosures are easier to incorporate with exclusion system may be aesthetically unacceptable to the fish management practices and are easier to maintain landowner. than complete enclosures. Overhead wire systems are considered cost effective for small ponds (less than 5 Partial exclusion is the limited enclosure of an area with acres). It is recommended that high-value fish subject to wire or string lines to discourage bird use (Figure 4). The predation by herons and egrets be raised in small ponds lines are run laterally or set in a grid pattern across ponds with overhead wire systems. or raceways to impede access by birds. Partial exclusion is usually less expensive than total exclosure, but will not All exclusion systems must be structurally sufficient to eliminate heron and egret use of the site. As with total withstand the weight and impact of birds. Consider exclusion, overhead wire systems are impractical for large weather conditions; the infrastructure should be strong ponds due to the difficulty in spanning large distances. enough to support accumulations of ice and snow. Page 4 WDM Technical Series─Herons and Egrets Perimeter fencing and wires have been used with limited Trapping success to exclude herons and egrets from ponds. Wading birds quickly acclimate to barriers and jump over wires to Allowed with permits, but typically ineffective at controlling feed on fish. Electric perimeter wires also have proven to damage. be ineffective and impractical for most situations. Shooting Frightening Devices It is illegal to shoot herons and egrets without a permit Frightening devices are effective tools for dispersing large from the USFWS. A permit can be obtained by commercial concentrations of herons and egrets from damage sites. fish farms to augment their on-going nonlethal harassment Many visual and noise-making devices are commercially programs. Contact USDA APHIS Wildlife Services or your available for scaring birds, including gas-operated state wildlife agency for more information. exploders, pyrotechnics, electronic noise makers, bird distress calls, effigies, eyespot balloons (Figure 5), reflective tape, and water spray devices. Methods for incorporating these devices into a bird scaring program are Economics described in the Bird Dispersal Techniques publication of the Wildlife Damage Management Technical Series. As Heron and egret damage is difficult to quantify. The relative discussed previously, it is important to use a variety of abundance of fish among aquaculture ponds is highly frightening devices in a timely and persistent manner. variable. Therefore, it is difficult to assess the overall impact of bird depredation until harvest. At large aquaculture facilities, the effectiveness of these devices is compromised over time as herons and egrets Loss estimation requires knowledge of the number of birds become habituated to the deterrents. At this point, present, feeding duration, number of fish taken, and the frightening devices will simply push herons and egrets from crop value. One study assessed esophageal and stomach one pond to another nearby pond where they will continue contents of 4 species of herons in Arkansas and found feeding. Lethal control may be necessary to enhance the losses of golden shiners ranged from $0.10 to $0.62 per overall effectiveness of a bird scaring program at these feeding. Based on 2 feedings per day, a flock of 100 sites. See the Shooting section for more details. wading birds present on a fish farm for a 3-month period At urban rookeries, frightening devices can be used to relocate birds prior to nesting. Once active nests are established, it is illegal to intentionally disperse birds from a nest site. Contact the USFWS for further clarification. Repellents None are registered. Fertility Control None are available. Figure 5. “Eye-spot” balloons may help protect small areas from heron and Toxicants egret damage for a limited period of time. None are registered. U.S. Department of Agriculture Page 5 resulted in losses from $1,800 to $11,160, depending on the species composition. Indirect
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